Bike rack advice - tailgate or towbar?

McFlude

McFlude

Member
T6 Pro
I am making a trip in my T6 tailgate van in the spring and would like to take two bikes. It is unlikely that I shall have a need to take bikes for the rest of the year so am reluctant to purchase a new rack. I could try to purchase a second hand one but as they always seem to be collection only it is difficult to find one within a reasonable distance from home in Exeter. Alternatively I could investigate the possibility of hiring a rack.

The other option might be to purchase a rack that could be fitted to my towbar as these seem to be reasonably priced. I would be keen to receive feedback from anyone who has experience of them. Are they worth considering?
 
The advantage of a towbar bike rack is that you can remove it! I quite like the tailgate bike rack even though it is not used often! It comes in handy in the summer though! I also have a 4-bike towbar bike rack and it never gets used!!!
 
We have an Altera Strada DL3 on our towball. It's pretty much the "gold standard" for these racks. Although whether it's "reasonably priced" is perhaps another discussion! It depends on whether you want to be able to access the rear of the van with a rack on the towball. There is a 2 bike version, but the 3 is really more practical, as using the outermost mounts means the tailgate will clear the bikes when the rack is slid back. Anything on the innermost mount will probably require the handlebars rotated 90 degrees, and this is certainly the case with the 2 bike version. If you don't need to be able to open the tailgate / doors, then there are cheaper options available.
 
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I had no choice but to get a tow bar mounted bike rack (barn doors, spoiler etc). I've recently purchased the Atera Strada DL3 (3 bike carrier) and its great. Also slides away from the van to give ample room to open the barn doors without having to take the bikes and bike rack off.

Price was very good from Roofbox (I think these guys are the only UK supplier for the Atera Strada).
 
McFlude said:
I am making a trip in my T6 tailgate van in the spring and would like to take two bikes. It is unlikely that I shall have a need to take bikes for the rest of the year so am reluctant to purchase a new rack. I could try to purchase a second hand one but as they always seem to be collection only it is difficult to find one within a reasonable distance from home in Exeter. Alternatively I could investigate the possibility of hiring a rack.

The other option might be to purchase a rack that could be fitted to my towbar as these seem to be reasonably priced. I would be keen to receive feedback from anyone who has experience of them. Are they worth considering?
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I’ve got a Thule Velospace XT3 and I’m very pleased with it. Takes 3 bikes as standard and you can clip on a 4th rail if needed.

You can open the tailgate with 4 bikes on it, which is essential for me. I had a VW tailgate mounted rack but didn’t get on with it.

The beauty of this is that you can use it on any vehicle with a standard tow bar.

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All good suggestions so far but unfortunately all would cost more than my budget of maximum £200 (new or SH) for what will be, in effect, a single trip. There seem to be a few in the sub £100 bracket such as the Thule 970 but I am unsure if that would be suitable.
 
If you’ve got a lighting board, the Thule 970 looks good value. I’ve no experience of using it though.
 
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McFlude said:
All good suggestions so far but unfortunately all would cost more than my budget of maximum £200 (new or SH) for what will be, in effect, a single trip. There seem to be a few in the sub £100 bracket such as the Thule 970 but I am unsure if that would be suitable.
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If it's just for a one off, can you hire one? There's a place near me in Lichfield (Allfit I think they are called) that sell but also hire trailers etc and are a main Thule Dealer. Might be worth speaking to a Thule main dealer close to you to see if they have any option available for short term hire?
 
I pondered long and hard in trying to decide on a cheap option for a bike rack for occasional use. I finally managed to buy one for £80 and thought that it might be useful to provide a bit of feedback about my choice.

As stated in my initial post I only wanted a rack for occasional use so didn't want to spend £500 - £600 on an Atera or similar which seemed to come highly recommended. I found that I could rent a rack for £32 locally but with two trips now planned I decided that it would be better to buy something outright if I could. It is difficult to buy a secondhand rack as all are advertised as collection only and with the cost of fuel it puts many out of contention. I then found a Thule 9708 advertised locally on eBay. I couldn't find any reviews but decided to buy it and give it a try even though I was a little dubious about its suitability before I saw it.

However I used it at the weekend for a 400 mile round trip with three bikes attached and I have to say that I am mightily impressed. The bikes were all full size; two mountain and one hybrid. I think that it would be a bit of a squeeze to get four similar size bikes on it without swiveling the handlebars of the bike closest to the tailgate. I have to say, also that one of the bikes, a Trek, only just fitted between the hanging bars due to the shape of the frame and it took a little time to maneuver into position. It was possible to push the rack around a little and I had a few concerns about the handlebars touching the tailgate if the rack vibrated over bumps. The solution was to reposition the fixing rubbers so that the bikes were away from the bodywork which may be why I thought that hanging 4 bikes might have been a squeeze. In the event the rack seemed fairly rigid. The wheels of the bikes extended slightly beyond the width of the van so I could keep an eye on them but didn't see any sign of movement at all.

The rack is designed to swivel down to allow access to the tailgate or car boot but I didn't try this as it would be a two handed job and possibly a bit of a faff. When we reached our destination we just took the bikes off and removed the rack which is just held by one sturdy bolt and then I folded it and stored it on the drivers seat. The fact that it folds also means that it doesn't need it's own shed to store it. The bolt is similar size to a wheel nut and as long as it is tightened to an FT torque setting I think it is unlikely to vibrate loose. I had some plastic waste pipe left over from my camper conversion and found that it fitted perfectly in the rubbers for the 4th bike position and allowed the lighting board to be fixed to it.

So after my initial trip would I recommend a Thule 9708? Well all that I can say is that I am off to Germany for a 1000 mile round trip in a few weeks and intending to take two bikes and will have no hesitation in using the rack again.
 
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